The Baltic Sea Region 5G ecosystem forum ‘’5G Techritory" was held on 27-28 September 2018 in Riga and brought together European policymakers, public officials, business leaders, investors, industry experts, new companies and academic representatives, including more than 60 speakers of the highest level from Europe, Asia and US.
‘"The main objective of the 5G Forum was to set up a cooperation platform between the countries of the Baltic Sea Region to promote the development and use of 5G technology. Taking into account Latvia's achievements in the field of mobile telecommunication and the development of the ecosystem, Latvia wants to take a leading role in this process and to promote the development of cross-border projects", said Neils Kalniņš, ‘’5G Techritory’’ Program Director.
Major international players were present at the Forum - such as the President of ‘’Qualcomm’’ EMEA Enrico Salvatori (USA), the Director-General of Communication Network, Content and Technologies of the European Commission Roberto Viola (Belgium), Senior Vice President of ‘’Cisco Systems” Peter Karlstromer (USA), Senior Vice President of the European Market of ‘’Nokia Corporation” Markus Borchert (Finland), President of 5G Product Line of ‘’Huawei Technologies Corporation” Chaobin Yang (China), Vice-President – Deputy Head of Global Services and Operations and Group Network Manager of ‘’Telia Company AB” Gabriela Styf Sjöman (Sweden), Prime Minister of the Republic of Latvia Māris Kučinskis, management and industry leaders and international media.
The Forum highlighted high-level business and political discussions on 5G global deployment, including on how to turn visions into real business models as well as on the latest 5G progress in Europe - smart city, smart mobility, smart healthcare and Industry 4.0.
As Europe is actively involved in the race for getting at the forefront of the introduction of 5G technology, Baltic Sea region is perfectly positioned to be a digital frontrunner towards 5G opportunities in Europe and to challenge Silicon Valley and Asia in this global competition. There is a close synergy between ‘’5G Techritory’’ and the latest digital agenda of the Nordic Council of Ministers which plays a key role in fostering the Nordic-Baltic digital cross-border cooperation.
The day before the conference, on September 26, a 5G Ideation workshop was organized to bring together industry experts, mentors and people interested in 5G technology to come up with viable business concepts based on 5G technology in smart cities, mobility, or healthcare. The 5G Ideation workshop was attended by technology industry enthusiasts - new business representatives from the Baltic States, as well as 20 new South Korean companies that are already working on 5G products and ideas.
